RTVE: Congress limits universal justice with the only votes in favor of the PP

• La oposición ve "inconstitucional" that entails the dismissal of cases
• The proposal affects cases such as the genocide in Tibet or the death of Couso
• El PP la defiende para "ampliar" jurisdiction over crimes outside Spain
• IU and UPyD accuse the Government of bending to the interests of the Chinese Government

The Minister of Justice, Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón, in the Government control session in the Senate.EFE

RTVE.es/EFE 11.02.2014 – 21:29h

The Plenary Congress of Deputies has approved, with the favorable votes of the PP and the rejection en bloc of the entire opposition, the proposal of the popular parliamentary group to limit what is known as universal justice, so that the conditions under which a Spanish judge can investigate crimes committed outside the national territory are restricted.. The proposal has gone ahead with 179 votes in favor and 163 against.

All groups in the opposition have agreed in the debate in the Congress of Deputies in classifying as "unconstitutional" the dismissal of open cases as a result of restricting the conditions under which a Spanish judge can investigate crimes committed outside the national territory, as is the case of the alleged repression in Tibet, what has upset Beijing.

The popular parliamentary group includes in the proposal a transitional provision in which it requests that the causes that at the time of the entry into force of the law are in process are dismissed "hasta que no se acredite el cumplimiento de los requisitos establecidos".

For that reason, la oposición ha acusado al Gobierno de "arrollar" the rights of Spaniards by bowing to the demands of countries like China to eliminate universal justice in Spain.

The PP has defended the reform by considering that "expand" the crimes in which you can act. In the debate prior to the vote on the proposition, the spokesperson for Justice of the Popular Party, Jose Miguel Castillo, has defended its approval for “expand the list of crimes committed outside the territory” español. In this sense, has indicated that the reform will take into account crimes against sexual integrity, and on international economic transactions.

With the reform, according to the popular spokesperson, interference will be avoided” in acts committed in another State, given that, as explained, “persecution and prosecution are objectively guaranteed”, when the State where the crimes were committed “is unwilling or unable to face” the denunciation of the facts.

He has also denied that the proposal introduces limitations, to which he added that The prosecutor “must present the complaint in all cases "that it is clear that the crimes have been committed".

Amnesty International (AI), along with others 16 organizations, has delivered a letter to the Congress of Deputies to demand that parliamentary groups reject the reform of the Organic Law of the Judiciary regarding universal jurisdiction proposed by the PP.

The National Court is currently processing various cases under that principle of Universal Justice.

The PSOE asks the PP to withdraw the proposal

For your part, the PSOE spokesperson in Congress, Soraya Rodríguez, has asked the PP in the debate to withdraw the proposal because it would place the “international reputation” of Spain “at the back of the line in the defense of crimes against human rights”.

Soraya Rodríguez believes that the proposal leaves Spaniards in a defenseless situation because “any country committed to human rights can prosecute them.”.

From the proposition it follows, according to the socialist spokesperson, that the alleged perpetrator of a crime will be outside the jurisdiction because an extradition order has been denied against that person.

She further , Soraya Rodríguez has predicted that the Gobierno español "podrá ser denunciado" because the “modification of universal jurisdiction is something” contrary” to international agreements and therefore “it will not have a long-term future”.

Before the debate in Congress, The PSOE spokesperson has announced that her party is considering filing an appeal for unconstitutionality contra la reforma de la jurisdicción universal impulsada por el PP y que su partido derogará la ley si ganan las próximas elecciones y la reformá en un "debate consensuado".

After meet with the relatives of journalist José Couso, died in Iraq in 2003, la portavoz socialista ha explicado que limitar la jurisdicción universal en España provoca "la absolute lack of protection of nationals" y "vulnera el principio de tutela judicial efectiva".

IU, UPyD y CiU la ven "inconstitucional"

While, United Left (IU) has denounced the “unconstitutionality” of the proposition, because it assumes that the Government “legislates on open procedures”. Your spokesperson, Gaspar Llamazares, cree que el PP pretende "evitar" the reports of the General Council of the Judiciary, of the Council of State and the Fiscal Council,"vitales" in a reform of international jurisdiction.

IU has accused the Government of "exchanging human rights for commercial rights", in reference to relations with the Chinese Government, y lo ha calificado como una "vergüenza".

In the same sense, the deputy of UPYD Irena Lozano has agreed with IU in accusing the Popular Party of bending to the interests of China, considering that the PP pretende evitar "molestias a la tiranía de China", tras los "buenos resultados" in the complaint filed by a Tibetan citizen.

Convergence and Union has also announced its nay considering that it violates the first article of the Spanish Constitution that guarantees justice “in capital letters”, his spokesperson stated. For CiU, The PP proposal entails “practically the disappearance” of universal jurisdiction in Spain and “violates international treaties” that the Spanish State has signed.

He Mixed Group has announced your vote against and has criticized the proposition because it “weakens the rule of law.”” and “guarantees impunity for perpetrators of crimes”. He has also accused the Government of “not having taken into account, given its importance, the establishment of the necessary debate.”” and has urged the PP to withdraw the proposal.

While, he ERC spokesperson in Congress, Joan Tardá has proposed to the rest of the opposition groups that they support a recurso de inconstitucionalidad que "50 diputados tendrían a su alcance”.

“There are three of us Republicans but we are convinced that different political forces in Parliament, like the PSOE, “They would join this very necessary proposal.”, Tardá pointed out. She further , has made a llamamiento a los jueces para que planteen la "inconstitucionalidad" of the measure, que ha calificado como "entierro de la justicia universal", since it will mean the dismissal of open cases, un efecto retroactivo que considera "inadmisible".

The case of the Tibet genocide would be dismissed

With this proposition, The crimes of the so-called universal jurisdiction will be prosecutable as long as they are criminally responsible were Spanish or foreigners with Spanish nationality after the commission of the act and only if the victim or the prosecution have filed a complaint in court.

In addition to these types of crimes, The PP bill also establishes the conditions in the case of crimes of forced disappearances and torture, such as that the alleged perpetrator is Spanish or that the victim was Spanish at the time of the events and whenever the accused is in our country.

One of the cases that the National Court is now processing is the Tibet case investigated by the judge of the National Court Ismael Moreno, in which all the defendants are Chinese citizens, including two former presidents of that country, while the plaintiffs are the Tibet Support Committee, The Casa del Tibet Foundation and a Slaw of Spanish nationality.

In fact, The judge of the National Court Ismael Moreno ordered this Mondayinternational search and captureand the entry into prison unconditionally and without bail of the former president of China along with four other former leaders of the country, those accused of crimes of genocide, torture and crimes against humanity when considering that they are allegedly responsible for the genocide perpetrated by the communist Government in TibetDuring the years 80 and 90.

In addition to the case affecting former Chinese president Jiang Zemin, also The investigation into the death of the television cameraman could be affected José Couso an Iraq, since in this case the soldiers accused by the judge of the National Court Santiago Pedraz are American citizens who are not in Spain.

This Tuesday the Couso's family has asked all parliamentary groups to prevent the reform legal that would force the National Court to archive the case.

The former judge of the National CourtBaltasar Garzón also has asked that the law on universal jurisdiction not be eliminated, y ha criticado este lunes la "voracidad" del PP a la hora de "restringir derechos", while asking thatthe law on universal jurisdiction is not reformed que dejaría a España sin potestad para "perseguir o investigar crímenes de lesa humanidad", like genocides.